Chapter 7
LYK
Fury was boiling away inside him, but on the surface, he appeared completely calm. Lyk couldn’t believe he’d been laid low by that ridiculous flying creature. Then to have two females defeat the creature right in front of him while he was still unable to move? His pride was definitely stung.
But these things were not fueling his anger. They were inconsequential when he considered the fact that Rigel Rigellus just tried to kidnap the woman he’d come to think of as his own.
Lyk watched, his eyes like slits, as the men marched Rigellus onto his bridge. The fat man hung from their grip, limp, a sullen look in his eyes.
“Drop him,” Lyk said, and those holding him up did as instructed, dumping Rigellus onto the floor of the bridge.
The fat man rolled there like a turtle flipped on its back. Celdrake sauntered in and Lyk addressed him.
“Get the rest of his men off his ship and put them in the mess under heavy guard.” Turning to the two crew members of his that had helped drag the fat man here, he told them to return to Rigellus’s ship and prepare to pilot it.
“Why?” Celdrake asked. “We’ve got all the cargo off it already.”
“We’re taking the ship.”
The cyborg’s eyes widened. “Aye, she’s a fine vessel, but everyone knows that ship belongs to Rigellus. If the authorities catch wind of us cruising along in it—”
“They won’t.”
Confusion covered Celdrake’s face. “You can’t mean to sell it. Everyone would know it was hot. I suppose we could scrap it, let it be sold for parts.”
“We’re going to crash it.”
Celdrake laughed. “Any particular reason? We don’t usually mark our victims out for special treatment.”
“This is different.” Lyk looked down at the man who was still struggling to right himself. “This time, the captain is going down with his ship.”
“What?” Rigellus froze.
Celdrake nodded, his expression neutral, then exited the bridge to follow Lyk’s orders. Lyk turned to where the women he’d rescued stood. “This man promised to take you to the Rings, correct? And you paid him?”
His female nodded. “He said it was his sacred duty as a philanthropist.”
His upper lip curling, Lyk shoved at the pathetic figure on the floor with the tip of his boot. “Is that true? Did you say that?”
“I was taking them to the Rings,” Rigellus blubbered.
“Not as passengers,” Lyk snarled. “You were planning to sell them.”
“No!” The fat man finally managed to roll over and was attempting to push himself to his knees. “Slavery is illegal in this quadrant.”
Lyk laughed. “Which is why you pay exorbitant amounts to your powerful friends, right? They look the other way while you import slaves, making both of you rich along the way.”
“You’re one to talk. You’re a pirate! A scoundrel!” Rigellus spat on the floor in front of Lyk’s feet.
Cocking an eyebrow at the parasite in front of him, Lyk grinned. “You’re right. But I don’t trade in innocent flesh.” He aimed a kick into Rigellus’s fat gut, causing him to double over then tumble back onto the floor. Lyk’s smile widened when he realized the slaver was now lying in his own spit.
The gasp from behind him reminded him of the women’s presence. “Take them to my quarters,” he said to one of his men, but the one he already considered his spoke up immediately.
“No.” She crossed her arms, defiance clear in every line of her body. “We’re a part of this. We’re not going anywhere.”
He eyed them. His woman was breathing heavily, her cheeks flushed, her eyes bright. The female beside her, however, had gone pale, her eyes too wide. Clearly, she was the one who’d gasped.
Still, Lyk had to respect their grit. They’d managed to escape their holding cell and take out the creature that had taken him down until his superior Vartik healing had kicked in. Maybe she was right. Maybe they deserved to see this through to the end.
The viewscreen suddenly switched on, revealing a view of the other ship’s bridge. One of the men he’d sent over appeared shirtless. He held up a squirming mass, covered by black fabric, presumably the man’s shirt.
“We found this thing skulking in the corridor,” he said, pulling back the fabric to reveal the bulging face of the creature that had attacked Lyk.
“Popkins!” Rigellus shouted.
At the same time, Lyk shot out a warning. “Keep his mouth closed! He emits a paralyzing gas.”
The other member of his crew came to lend a hand, and together, they made sure the creature was secured.
“Don’t hurt my baby!” Rigellus blubbered from the floor. “Please!”
“Your baby?” Lyk scoffed. “I wasn’t aware that the male of your species carried the young.”
“You don’t understand. He’s not my young. He’s my pet. My little Popkins! I won’t be separated from him!”
“Have it your way,” Lyk said, then reached down to grab Rigellus by his arm. Using his considerable strength, Lyk lifted him to his feet. “Get him back to his ship. Lock him in his own quarters with his pet.”
“Wait!” Rigellus yelled, but Lyk’s crew didn’t hesitate to follow his orders. “You can’t do this! I’ll give you anything! Riches! Women! Anything you want!”
Lyk ignored his cries, which diminished as he was dragged from the bridge. Turning back to the viewscreen, he ordered the crew on Rigellus’s ship to plot a course following him. Once Rigellus and his handlers were back on their own ship, Lyk ordered the docking clamps to be released.
As Lyk steered back into the asteroid field, Celdrake returned to the bridge. “Ten men in red livery are under guard in the mess. What are you planning to do with them?”
“We will offer them a chance to join up, or we’ll drop them back on Gamma-17.”
“You aren’t worried about any of them talking?” The cyborg’s tone was neutral, but Lyk could tell his second in command was questioning his decision.
Lyk turned to his trusted friend. “He’s a slaver. He won’t be missed.”
“You’ve never shied away from violence, but you’ve also never gone out of your way to murder someone. What makes Rigellus special?”
It took everything inside him not to turn and look at the female who was even now studying him. “I might be a pirate, but I have never exploited those weaker than me. I’ve gone after those with too much, those who are just as crooked as we are, but never an innocent party.”
“So you took his cargo and scared the stars out of him. Isn’t that enough?”
“No.” Lyk’s tone was firm. “Who knows what has become of the hundreds he’s sold? What they’ve suffered. Rigellus losing a cargo hold full of fancy furniture and antique bric-a-brac isn’t going to stop him.”
Celdrake inclined his head in acknowledgement, stepping back as Lyk spoke to the men on the other ship, still visible on the viewscreen. “I want you to set a course for asteroid C3-D17. The big one. Set it on autopilot, to resume ten minutes from now.”
Rigellus, tied to his massive chair, was sobbing in the background, his pet rolling around at his feet, wings and mouth bound. Even his mustache looked defeated. Still, Lyk felt no pity for the slaver. He was disgusting, profiting off depriving others of their freedom.
“On your way out, start a small mechanical fire. In the event that someone does come looking for his carcass, it will throw them off our trail, make them think the ship crashed due to a mechanical failure.”
“Will do,” his crewman acknowledged. Then the feed went black.
Lyk brought his cruiser close again, reattaching the docking clamps to allow the last of his crew to return to his ship. As soon as word reached him that they were aboard, he piloted the ship away to a safe distance, then stood back to watch Rigellus’s demise.
The communications console buzzed. Celdrake glanced down at it. “Rigellus is hailing you.”
“Put him on screen.”
The fat man had somehow managed to shift his bulk so that the back of his hand could hit the small console embedded in the arm of his chair. “Don’t do this! Please!”
“His ship’s engines are engaging,” Celdrake said, hitting the panel to split the viewscreen. The image of Rigellus’s ship starting to move was juxtaposed against Rigellus’s sniveling face.
Lyk turned around, his eyes on the females. The one he considered his was focused on the viewscreen. The other’s eyes were on the floor. “Are you sure you wouldn’t be more comfortable in my quarters?” he asked, his tone neutral.
His woman shook her head. “He deserves this.”
Lyk’s heart beat hard in his chest. Everything about this woman, including her need for vengeance, warmed his insides.
Still, the other one looked distressed. Lyk turned to Celdrake, speaking softly. “Take the blonde to the officer’s lounge and get her some water. Stay with her there.”
When Celdrake came forward, his woman grabbed the blonde’s hand. “You’re not taking her anywhere.”
The blonde patted his woman’s hand. “It’s okay, sis. I could use some water.”
“I don’t trust these men,” his woman hissed.
The blonde shrugged. “We’re here, for better or worse. You might want to watch this, but I don’t.” She gently extracted her hand from her sister’s grip and allowed Celdrake to lead her off the bridge.
Lyk moved closer to his woman, restraining himself from touching her. That fact that she didn’t trust him rankled him. Instinctively, he knew she was the one for him. His mate. But it was clear she didn’t have those same instincts.
She will.
Turning back to the viewscreen, he watched as the fat man wept and begged. Lyk was not moved. He knew nothing less than death would stop a greedy fuck like Rigellus from trafficking in slaves and misery. With his connections, his wealth, his impunity, the temptation would be too great.
This was punishment, but it was also prevention.
As a Vartik, Lyk knew exactly what it felt like to be treated as chattel.
His race had been hunted down, not only for their blood and its magical healing properties, but for their strength and beauty.
He knew there were others of his race in chains throughout the galaxy, despite the hard work his family put in to prevent such exploitation.
A man like Rigellus didn’t see others as persons. He saw them as objects that could be sold for a pile of credits. Anyone who valued money above lives deserved a taste of their own medicine.
The ship sailed straight toward the looming asteroid. Lyk watched, unperturbed, as the fat man went from begging and crying to wailing and screaming. His eyes flicked over to the woman by his side.
Her breath was sawing in and out of her, her hands clenched into fists.
It was clear that she’d never experienced anything like this.
She’d never seen someone die before her eyes.
He couldn’t doubt her backbone, nor could he deny her fire, but it was evident that she’d been more sheltered than he’d expected.
He wanted to grab her, press her to his chest, stroke her hair in this moment.
But he wouldn’t do that to her. She wanted her revenge, and his chest swelled at being able to give it to her.
He’d considered strangling Rigellus with his own hands, channeling the anger he felt at Rigellus daring to lay a hand on her into choking the bastard to death.
He’d restrained himself, barely, because he knew she was already skittish with him.
She might shy from his hands if they were covered in Rigellus’s blood.
“Please!” the fat man shrieked.
Then he said nothing.
The ship hit the asteroid, a magnificent explosion engulfing the ship in flames before it broke apart against the hard rock surface.
In moments, the ship was rubble.
Lyk smiled. He looked over at his woman, delighted to see a grin on her face as well.